The Next Chapter
by wolfenqueenyuri
Summary: Late night confessions over left-over Chinese food allow Gold and Regina to move forward in their relationship. Unabashed Golden Queen fluff. Entirely AU.


Author's note: This was partially inspired by a scene in "Someone Like You," a romantic comedy that's a particular favorite of mine, but mostly it was written to appease my muses, who are rather unhappy with certain developments in OUAT canon. This takes place in an AU future, where Cora and Hook have been defeated.

The Next Chapter

"Is it just me…or did that seem more intense than usual to you?" Regina Mills panted, struggling to regain her breath as she and Aiden Gold recovered from an impromptu and rather lengthy love-making session.

"It wasn't just you," Aiden replied, exhaustion apparent in his tone. "Are you sure that coffee wasn't laced with love potion?"

Regina scoffed. "Trust me…I kicked the habit long ago."

"You mean after we nearly killed ourselves trying to deal with the effects?" He chuckled from low in his throat, though he tugged her closer.

They lapsed into another pleasant silence, and then Regina twisted to gaze at him properly and quickly found herself transfixed. Though Aiden wasn't what was considered _traditionally_ handsome, he had an allure that was entirely his. Her eyes raked appreciatively over a leanly muscled torso, before fixating on the sharp angles of his face. She smiled fondly, and then reached out to brush silken strands of hair away from his eyes.

The affectionate action caused Aiden to glance over at her, a smile of his own gracing his striking features as their eyes locked. "What's that look for?"

"Am I not allowed to admire you?" she teased, dipping her head and kissing him briefly.

He murmured something incoherent before dragging her back into his arms, his lips claiming hers in a far more passionate kiss that gave her a better answer than words could.

Smirking against her lover's mouth, Regina pulled back and nuzzled her nose against his. "I thought as much."

"You are so sure of yourself," he shook his head, nuzzling back. "Though admittedly that's part of the reason I love you."

Her heart fluttered happily at his words. "I love you too."

He grinned and kissed her fervently.

She reciprocated the embrace gladly, but the mood was altered when she heard a stomach growl.

Slowly, Regina pulled away. "Was that you or me?"

"I'm not sure…but we did kind of skip dinner."

"…there's left-over Chinese in the fridge," she offered.

"Sounds perfect."

A few minutes later, the couple ventured into Regina's kitchen.

The former mayor had donned Aiden's shirt, while the pawnbroker was more than comfortable to wander around in his boxers, much to her amusement.

He watched her as she opened the door and searched through their options, grinning at the adorable image she made when she emerged with several boxes of food balanced in her arms. "Someone's hungry."

"_Someone _made me work through the night on a spell and caused me to not eat dinner. Now come over here and help me!"

Chuckling, he did as she demanded and helped her decide which dishes they would share.

As they waited for the beef and broccoli to warm up, Aiden grabbed a handful of cold chow-mien noodles and began to snack on them.

"Hmm…this is actually pretty good as is," he admitted.

"Really?" Regina blinked. "I've never tried it cold."

"Here, tilt your head back," he instructed, and then placed a few noodles carefully in her mouth.

Regina chewed thoughtfully before confessing. "You're right. It's not bad."

After a few more minutes, the other dishes were heated properly, and the pair grabbed some utensils and plates and moved to sit at the kitchen table.

They lapsed into comfortable silence as they ate, enjoying the meal and each other's company.

Regina took a sip of water, before clearing her throat. "So…I've been thinking...maybe it's time you moved in."

Aiden froze, looking at her seriously before swallowing and replying: "Are you sure this is a conversation we should be having in the middle of the night over left-over take out while sitting in our underwear?"

She just gave him a hurt look. "Jesus, Aiden. It's not like I said "Let's get married."

"No, no…" realizing he'd just stuck his foot in his mouth, so to speak, Aiden reached for her hand and stroked over her knuckles reassuringly. "That's not what I meant. It's just…Regina, you're the reason we're able to be like this. Your mother is gone, Hook's been defeated, and everything's finally gotten back to as close to normal as our lives can be. I just want to make sure this is really what you want."

The concern in his eyes made her heart skip a beat. "Look," she leaned closer. "I know we said we'd take this slow…but that kind of got thrown out the window when we realized we could barely keep our hands off each other after our first kiss."

He chuckled at the memory. "True enough."

"I want to spend my life with you. I'm not saying marriage and kids right away…we've got enough going on in our lives right now to delay that for a bit. I'm just saying: move in. Live with me. Let's take it one day at a time and see where it leads."

He gazed at her for a moment that seemed to stretch on forever until his face lit up in the happiest smile she had ever seen. "Then yes: I'll move in."

"You mean it?" She had to make certain.

"After that brilliant speech? How can I say no?" he laughed softly before lacing her fingers with his and kissing her knuckles sweetly. "Besides: I want to be by your side as much as possible. Why waste any more time, right?"

She blinked back delighted tears. "Exactly."

He reached out and caressed over her cheek tenderly, and then they met in a loving kiss that sealed the agreement, eager to begin the next chapter of their life together.

The End


End file.
